Ocean Odyssey: Journeyman
by Cunicula Purpura
Summary: Seven writes a J/7 fic for the captain to read.


_A/N This might not be an original concept, but I liked it so much I had to write a story in this vein. I hope I did it justice! Also, I've never watched _Battlestar Galactica_, and only found out the particular happy accident regarding Lucy Lawless's character after having written this! As an aside, I think I might want to start watching _Battlestar Galactica_..._

_Oh, the parts written in italics are Seven's story or Janeway's thoughts or (in at least one case) a foreign language. Just in case I need to clarify!_

_-L_

* * *

_The ship with the designation '_HMS Journeyman'_ was adrift somewhere amid the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, a large body of saline water covering twenty point eight per cent of the M-class planet in the Alpha Quadrant designated as 'Earth'. Its captain, Elizabeth Jenner, was the first female to reach the rank of Captain within the British Royal Navy. She had been attempting to reach the North American continent in what was at the time termed the 'New World', specifically to the port city of Boston. Along with her on board the inefficient wind-powered wooden ship was a crew complement of one hundred and forty-two individuals. A sufficiently effective storm that seemed to have been conjured by improbable supernatural means left them stranded in a hitherto uncharted area on the 'open sea'. _

Captain Kathryn Janeway stifled a laugh. The woman standing in front of her had demanded that she read the short story she was writing at the captain's own suggestion. However; that she couldn't see how stiff and unimaginative the writing was completely beyond the captain. It amused her to no end. There was no way she could openly laugh as she read the stilted text in front of its author, though, so she chewed at a spot on her lower lip and only briefly glanced up into expectant blue eyes before she carried on reading.

_With only the stars and the period's inefficient technology such as long-obsolete objects termed a 'sextant' and a 'compass' to guide them home, the _Journeyman_ was facing an indeterminately long period of travel to return to England. Captain Jenner, however, was a formidable and determined woman and she would not rest until her crew once again set foot on the British Isles, a seemingly insignificant collection of islands off the European Continent on Earth's surface._

"Seven, Great Britain isn't just an 'insignificant collection of islands'! It was the strongest nation on Earth at the time you're writing about!"

"I did disclaim that it was 'seemingly' insignificant, Captain," Seven of Nine replied, a touch of defensiveness in her voice. "Please continue reading. As you can see, I have written more below."

Rolling her eyes, Janeway turned back to the PADD.

_The waters of the Atlantic Ocean were a dangerous place, and the _Journeyman_ encountered many hostile forces. None, however, were as reviled by the crew as the pirates known as the Buccaneers, who were led by a fearsome nameless Pirate Queen. The Buccaneer ships were unlike any developed by the Royal Navy or any other seafaring peoples at the time, as they were much more technologically advanced and operated at a level of efficiency that was near perfection. An encounter with the Buccaneers meant the almost certain sinking of one's vessel and the capture of its crew as slaves._

_One fateful day, not for the first time since their having been stranded, _Journeyman_ alighted upon a small fleet of Buccaneer vessels, and when they were not attacked, the emotionless tactical officer Tabac investigated the scene using his 'spyglass' and informed Captain Jenner that the Buccaneers were under attack by an unknown enemy. _

_Tabac!_ Janeway laughed to herself, holding her breath to try to quash her urge to double over with laughter. _This is adorable!_ She forced herself to keep a straight face and trained her eyes on the PADD's text again.

_The _Journeyman _attempted to alter their course and escape the confrontation unnoticed, however, several of the enemy fleet broke off and pursued them, and disabled the vessel. Even the Buccaneers were failing under the onslaught of the enemy, with several vessels having sunk and many more practically disabled ships facing the enemy in a futile standoff. Realising there was no alternative, Captain Jenner sent out a _Columba livia domestica_ with a letter tied to its limb, calling a temporary truce between the Buccaneers and the _Journeyman _to formulate a plan to evade the devastating enemy. _

"_Columba livia domestica_?" asked Janeway, squinting her eyes as she tried to think. "A carrier pigeon, instead of a hail?"

"Yes, Captain. It was either that, smoke signals, or some kind of communication through the waving of flags." Seven responded, somewhat eagerly. She gestured again for Janeway to continue.

"You really got into this, Seven," Janeway muttered, resuming what was left of the story so far.

_The Buccaneers, desperate for a solution to the problems they were facing as a result of the onslaught by who they termed 'Enemy Eighteen', agreed to cooperate with the _Journeyman_ on the condition that Captain Jenner board one of the Buccaneer vessels and strategize from there. The captain did not hesitate, and with unwavering determination, boarded a Buccaneer ship, where she demanded to engage with a single representative of the Buccaneers rather than the entire horde. A single slave was selected, another female who was designated Anne Henley but referred to by the Buccaneers as Number Three. _

_Captain Jenner and Number Three grudgingly worked together and began formulating a plan of attack against Enemy Eighteen. Eventually, they developed a unique chemical that would severely damage the Buccaneer vessels. Captain Jenner insisted that they test the chemical by firing cannonballs coated in it from the _Journeyman_. The Pirate Queen, in turn, insisted that Number Three return to the _Journeyman _along with the captain as a precaution. The chemical, as it was revealed, was indeed powerful against Enemy Eighteen, and while the battle raged once again, the Buccaneers now possessing the upper hand, _Journeyman _escaped with the lone slave still aboard. Number Three was stripped of her markings as a Buccaneer, her pirate garments replaced with a modified iteration of the Naval uniform, and she was made to conform with the standards of appearance and conduct of those aboard _Journeyman_. At first, she resisted, heavily, and Captain Jenner detained her in the ship's brig. When the captain came to speak with her, Number Three broke down in the smaller woman's arms, insisting that she would return to the Buccaneers. The captain told her as though it were a fact that she would not want to return to the Buccaneers if she remained with the _Journeyman _crew for a short period of time and that Number Three should 'give it' several weeks aboard the naval vessel. _

_She remained defiant at first but slowly Number Three realised that Captain Jenner had been correct, and she came to be grateful to the captain for removing her from the Buccaneers. In her efforts to contribute to the ship, Number Three became the ship's cartographer, adding the Buccaneers' knowledge of the waters to plot a reasonably safe path home and find suitable land to carry out repairs and replenish stocks. Over time, she grew to trust the crew and Captain Jenner in particular – in fact, Captain Jenner became something of a friend and a mentor to her._

Janeway set the PADD down on the desk in front of her. After staring at it for long moments while she gathered her thoughts, she re-focused her attention onto Seven, who was looking at her expectantly.

"It's a bit…thinly-veiled, isn't it? I mean…it's certainly engaging reading these events from your perspective, but…."

Seven shifted her weight from one leg to the other, raising the implant above her eye as she regarded the captain.

"I was led to believe it is entirely appropriate to draw from one's own experience when crafting literature," she said carefully.

Fighting hard to keep down the laughter that was threatening to erupt, Janeway brought a hand to her face and rubbed her temples.

"It is, of course," she told the ex-Borg. "But there's finding inspiration in your own life, and then there's- 'Elizabeth Jenner', Seven? Really? 'Number Three'?"

"Any similarities are merely coincidence, Captain."

Although she managed to restrain herself enough not to slap her knees and howl with laughter at that until tears came, Janeway couldn't help but let out a bark of a laugh, her eyes brimming with amusement as she smiled broadly at Seven.

"Have you been watching television with Mister Paris?" She asked, trying to contort her face back into some semblance of a serious expression.

Seven did not seem to understand her amusement.

"I only ask because that used to be a standard disclaimer on those old shows. Clearly, though, that'd be a complete lie coming from you, Seven!" She grinned, showing the blonde she meant it good-naturedly.

Seven turned her eyes upward to the ceiling, looking slightly irritated, so Janeway got up and moved around the desk, giving the taller woman's shoulder an affectionate squeeze before leaning back on the edge of the desk.

"I'm glad you decided to try your hand at creative writing, but perhaps you should work on making it a little more…creative?" she offered.

Tilting her head to the right, Seven frowned slightly before ordering "explain." She met Janeway's bemused eyes and then remembered to soften the imperative with a hurried "please."

"Use your imagination, Seven. Write about things you'd want to happen or even things you _don't _want to happen. Just write a little out of the box; you're writing a story, not a log with made up names."

With a resolute nod, Seven took the PADD back as Janeway handed it to her.

"Very well," she said, "I will endeavour to use my imagination. I will return the PADD to you for further commentary once I have written more."

"Understood, Number Three," Janeway winked and swallowed back a chuckle at the dirty look Seven threw her.

...

_The two women began spending an increasing amount of time in each other's company, both in duty and in recreation time. Number Three came to look forward to the discussions they shared in the Captain's cabin and consuming 'dinner' in the mess. Many of the crew, however, were averse to the Buccaneer's presence on the ship. The friendship she was building with the Captain did not diminish their reservations either, as many believed that the Captain displayed a high level of favouritism toward Number Three. This was further complicated one day when the _Journeyman_ encountered a Buccaneer vessel: Captain Jenner, realising that the ship could contain useful technology or information, gathered a small team on a lifeboat and rowed out to board the Buccaneer ship. Number Three insisted on joining, and the _Journeyman_ crew understood that she would be the most suitable choice to direct them within the ship. It was eerily quiet inside the bowels of the vessel, and although they were armed with the inefficient 'gun-powder' based weapons of the time, they felt ill at ease in the dim light below deck. _

"_I believe this is a trap," Number Three whispered, just as a heavy door was closed, blocking her off from the others, and several Buccaneers advanced towards her. _

"_Run!" ordered Number Three, when she noticed Captain Jenner had remained in the corridor, her eyes fixed on Number Three._

_The expression on the captain's face was remorseful and concerned but she turned and fled down the corridor. Number Three watched her go, determined to ensure the safety of Tabac, Henry Park, and most importantly, Captain Jenner._

_The trap had been laid by none other than the Pirate Queen herself, and Number Three was led to her cabin where she was taunted and berated by the Queen for having left the Buccaneers._

_"You are weak, insignificant," the Pirate Queen informed Number Three, who unyieldingly 'stood her ground' and defended her own honour and that of Captain Jenner._

_For several hours that felt as though it were a much longer period, as preposterous as it may seem because an hour is a fixed length of time, Number Three was held captive by the Pirate Queen and subjected to irritating attempts at insults and threats. However, Number Three remained recalcitrant, satisfied in the knowledge that her Captain and the crew were safe. Her only cause for concern came when suddenly Captain Jenner was there again, pointing a 'gun' at the Pirate Queen. Stunned that she would return for her and fearing for the captain's life as she took on the fearsome Pirate Queen, Number Three could only look on as Captain Jenner threatened the Buccaneers in turn. They escaped together, returning safely to the _Journeyman_, leaving an enraged and flailing Pirate Queen in their wake as they made their way once more towards England._

_This event, Number Three later realised, was a major catalyst in the events to come. From the moment when their eyes locked on the Buccaneer ship, she could no longer deny that she belonged with the _Journeyman_ crew, that she belonged with Captain Jenner._

Janeway's jaw dropped slightly, and she looked up at Seven with a look that was half questioning, half pleading. _What does that mean_, her head screamed at her. Seven remained impassive, merely twitching an eyebrow slightly as she watched the gears in the captain's head spinning. At a loss, Janeway resumed reading.

_More determined than ever before to assist her crew in getting home, Number Three developed several improved pieces of technology such as better spyglasses and other navigational devices that would help them plot safer, faster courses back to the unremarkable island off the European continent. Through these improvements, Number Three discovered a suitable uninhabited island near which to anchor the ship for several days in order to carry out maintenance on the vessel and allow the crew to engage in the apparently necessary 'rest and relaxation' of shore leave. Everyone aboard _Journeyman_ was grateful for the break, and some even hesitantly thanked Number Three, although many still believed she was untrustworthy or disliked her simply because the captain had returned to the Buccaneer ship for her alone. Nevertheless, they immediately set course for the island, and once they arrived the entire crew disembarked. With nobody aboard, there were no witnesses to the strange glow that began emanating from the amulet within Number Three's small assortment of effects that she had kept from her time with the Buccaneers. _

_The initial time on the island was pleasant, and Captain Jenner taught Number Three how to play 'volleyball' on the shore and they spent their discussions walking and looking for the discarded exoskeletons of dead molluscs on the beach. Number Three felt safe and what the captain might have described as 'happy', relieved to have pleased the crew and its captain by locating the island. During the course of the third evening, the crew was sitting around a series of fires they had built, eating vegetable matter they had foraged from the island and roasting crustaceans, fish, and birds over the open flames. All of the members of the _Journeyman_ crew were conversing in a desultory manner when suddenly young Henry Park jumped up._

"_There is a vessel approaching!" he exclaimed frantically._

Janeway snorted. "Harry doesn't speak like that," she laughed.

"It is not Ensign Kim, Captain, it is _Henry Park_," Seven said, tilting her head dismissively. "Henry Park _does_ speak like that." She nodded for emphasis.

_The ship drew closer, and several of the crew drew a sharp breath, their captain voicing their observation: "it's the Buccaneers!"_

_The crew scrambled, trying to reach the _Journeyman,_ however, they were unable to gain much ground before the Buccaneers were firing their cannonballs onto the beach, scattering sand and crewmen alike. Weaving through the shrapnel as they sprinted toward _Journeyman_, Captain Jenner, Number Three, the sailing master Timothy Bordeaux and the carpenter, Elena Garcia._

Janeway groaned, nearly giving in to her urge to drop her head onto her ready room's desk for the second time that morning. "Seven, this is a nineteenth-century British naval ship. Why would there be a 'Garcia' and a 'Park' on board anyway?"

"It is not implausible. The British empire, as you yourself have pointed out, was quite vast. Nevertheless, it is merely a fabrication, Captain. I may name my characters as I wish."

"Characters," Janeway repeated under her breath but shook her head and kept reading.

_The five crewmen boarded their vessel, and hastily made their way to the lower decks, quickly loading cannons with their ammunition. Their attacks were ineffectual, however, and the Buccaneers were undeterred._

"_We're out of cannonballs, Captain!" Garcia shouted as the Buccaneer vessel approached, adding in a string of expletives that added nothing of use to the situation._

"_We have to get out of here!" Bordeaux added, in a high-pitched tone and with excessive volume._

_He began running toward the stairs, presumably to reach the upper decks and attempt to retract the anchor and resume the helm of the ship. He did not take more than five paces, however, before Captain Jenner ordered him to halt._

"_Let them come," Jenner said resolutely in a particularly gruff voice. "I will not run away from the Buccaneers and they won't have my ship."_

"_They'll enslave us!" Garcia yelled, just as they heard the crash of the Buccaneer vessel against their hull and the sound of feet hitting the upper decks._

_Pirates rapidly surrounded them, pulling them away from each other and restraining them. They were summarily carried to the Buccaneer vessel, Tim Bordeaux cursing all the way. The pirates deposited them in an apparently empty cabin in the ship and formed a line against the wall, blocking the exit. An eerie voice emanated from the darkness surrounding them._

"_Number Three," it intoned, "welcome home."_

"_This is not my home," Number Three spat in reply._

"_It will always be your home. You are not one of them, you are unique. They do not accept you as we do."_

"_That is a lie," Number Three informed the voice, which she was aware belonged to the Pirate Queen._

_As though on cue, the Pirate Queen emerged into the faint light and stood impassively two point four one meters away from the group. Her lips were contorted into an unnatural smile, her eyes seeming cold and cruel despite being mere organs intended for sight and not the conveyance of emotion or personality traits._

"_It is no lie, Anne," the Pirate Queen stated, using the former slave's first name in an attempt to unnerve her. "They will never fully accept you. You are alone."_

_Without awaiting a reply from Number Three, the Pirate Queen turned toward Captain Jenner._

"_How lovely to see you again, Captain Jenner," she announced with no enjoyment evident in her tone._

"_How did you find us?" the Captain growled._

"_Quite simply, in fact. All Buccaneers wear an amulet, it serves both to identify them as Buccaneers and it is also imbued with magic. We can find any amulet with this compass," she informed the group, holding up the archaic device for them to observe._

_Number Three inhaled a slightly larger volume of air than was typical for her. Had she endangered Journeyman? Had keeping them on this island for shore leave allowed the Buccaneers to 'catch up' to them?_

"_What do you want?" Captain Jenner snarled, as the Pirate Queen began walking towards her, in a manner not unlike a member of the genus _Felis_._

_Touching a finger devoid of warmth to the captain's chin, the Pirate Queen answered the question in a voice so low it was almost inaudible._

"_I want to kill you and the rest of your crew, because I want my slave back."_

_An unstoppable sensation resulting from the emotion of 'rage' shook through Number Three's body, and before anyone was aware of her intentions, she had flung herself at the Pirate Queen, pushing her back into the shadows._

"_You will not harm the woman I love!" she dema-_

"What?!" Janeway yelped, looking up sharply at Seven, her heart dropping into her chest. "Love? Seven, what does this-"

Janeway stopped herself when she noticed how Seven had averted her eyes, the hints of a blush creeping up onto her alabaster skin.

"Please Captain," she practically whispered. "Continue reading."

Janeway gaped for a few seconds, feeling heat blossoming in her own cheeks. Completely at a loss, she tilted her head back down to the PADD and kept reading, as Seven had asked.

…_she demanded, becoming suddenly aware that she was pressing the barrel of a pistol she had found on the Pirate Queen's person against the Pirate Queen's throat. The Buccaneers took a step forward but, with a single glance from their queen, they halted and resumed their posts at the perimeter. _

"_How could you possibly think she will ever return your love, Anne?" the Pirate Queen taunted with a low chuckle that was meant to convey menace. _

"_It is irrelevant whether she returns my love or not," Number Three responded with equal menace. "I love her and I will not allow her to be harmed."_

"_She will be harmed, Anne. I demand it."_

"_Your demands are inadequate. I should kill you immediately."_

_The Pirate Queen's smile distorted into what is usually described as a 'smirk'. _

"_Put the gun down, surrender yourself to me, and I will let her go," the Queen offered but Number Three recognised this as a deception. _

"_If I were not certain your slaves would have harmed her within the same minute, I would have shot you when I first assaulted you," Number Three snarled. "I do not accept your proposal. You are lying."_

_At that moment, a cannonball broke through the inadequate wooden hull of the ship and Number Three was forced to release her hold on the Pirate Queen as she leapt out of the way of debris and the rudimentary projectile. _

_Captain Jenner took advantage of the distraction and prised a pistol from the nearest slave, hastily filling the inefficient weapon with its small projectiles known as 'shot' after ensuring that it was indeed filled with gunpowder. She took her aim and in one highly effective shot, slew the Pirate Queen. The slaves, not immediately aware of the entire situation, were distracted for a sufficient amount of time during which Captain Jenner loudly ordered her crewmen to flee. They ran through the hordes of Buccaneers, cannon fire, and all the debris of the increasingly damaged ship, finally making it onto the upper deck. They saw Tabac fighting off Buccaneers with a pistol and a cutlass in his hands, and he gestured to them when he saw them, shouting to someone aboard the _Journeyman_. The ship began drifting away, the anchors having been raised and the rudder taking advantage of a particularly strong current beneath the water's surface. _

_Captain Jenner delayed her own reboarding of the _Journeyman _as she ensured that her crewmen were safely on the correct vessel, and by the time she turned towards her ship the gap was significantly wide. She would have to take a 'running jump' to reach _Journeyman_. Looking back as several more Buccaneers advanced despite the gunfire from her crew, Captain Jenner took several steps backwards, inhaled deeply, then sprinted towards the edge of the damaged deck. She leapt. _

"That's _it_?!" Janeway practically yelled, her mouth dropping open against her better judgement. "Is this all?" she asked, turning the PADD over as though she were hoping there was more on the back.

Seven made a small noise of discomfort Janeway had never heard from the Borg before. She was regarding the device in the captain's hands with a look that could have been disdain.

"I…there is more," she admitted, producing another PADD from behind her back. "But I do not wish to be present when you read it."

"You don't want me to read it in front of you? Do I want to know why?"

"You will know why if you read it, Captain. I do not fully understand how the story progressed in this manner. You informed me before I began writing, however, that on occasion the story 'writes itself'. I dismissed that notion as merely another human expression but I have learned that this _is_ apparently the case with…fiction."

Janeway sighed, running her hands over her face. She knew the Borg wouldn't discuss the 'love' line, or anything else about this creative writing exercise, for that matter, until she'd read the whole story. Seven was acting strangely, though, even for Seven. Janeway wasn't so sure what to expect as she held out her hand for the second PADD.

"I'll read it tonight after duty shift," she eventually said resignedly. "Meet you same time tomorrow to discuss it?"

"Acceptable," the blonde agreed, and as usual, left without being dismissed.

Janeway shook her head yet again.

...

At the end of a long shift, Janeway collapsed onto her father's old armchair in her quarters. She settled herself into the comfortable leather, a tumbler of whisky in one hand and Seven's second PADD in the other.

"Let's see what she's gotten me into now," she whispered to herself, taking a sip of the amber liquid and enjoying its pleasant heat as she began to read.

"_Captain!" Number Three cried out, stretching her arms out futilely to the airborne woman. _

_The lower half of Captain Jenner impacted with the side of the ship, and she scrambled to retain her grip. Before she could process what was happening, Number Three was lifting her by the wrists and pulling her onto the deck. They did not need words to express their relief to one another. They retained eye contact as the captain regained her footing on the deck, managing to communicate wordlessly with each other for several seconds before they hurried to the rest of the crew to assist in their escape. There were a few remaining skirmishes with the Buccaneers that remained on board, as well as the few that had swum towards _Journeyman_ but within two hours the ship was safely away from the island, and ninety-seven point eight per cent of the crew accounted for. Repairs to the hull and upper deck began, and four hours after the attack the situation stabilised into something resembling normal. The missing crewmen were discovered, injured and thus unresponsive, and one individual had commandeered a lifeboat and rowed back to the ship. _

_While overseeing the repairs that were still underway, Captain Jenner paused in front of Number Three but did not immediately speak. Number Three caught sight of Elena Garcia watching from several paces away with apparent keen interest, her repair duty woefully forgotten. She chose not to acknowledge the eavesdropping carpenter. Eventually, Captain Jenner spoke. _

"_Number Three, please report to my cabin at your earliest convenience," was all she said, turning on her heel and walking out the door, placing her footsteps with considerably more force than usual. _

_Number Three turned to Garcia, who raised her shoulders in a gesture referred to as a shrug, which indicated that the woman did not have any further insight into the situation than Number Three herself. Arriving at a decision, Number Three turned and followed the captain to her cabin. _

Janeway set the PADD in her lap briefly and let out a long, shuddering breath. _Oh boy_, she told herself, _here we go_. If she knew how Seven was going to write this, and she was fairly confident she did, here was the scene where she and Seven…_no,_ she corrected herself with a flicker of amusement, _Number Three and Captain Jenner_, discussed the bold declaration of love that was made aboard the pirate ship. She found herself both intrigued and uncomfortable, unsure if the story was the same declaration from Seven of Nine to her, Captain Janeway, albeit in a much less dramatic manner. A little part of her couldn't help adding its own two cents' worth of doubt though, that maybe this really was just Seven's imagination running wild. _It's a little too close to home for that, Katie, _she argued back, and her heart began racing. Suddenly she needed to read the rest.

_When she entered, Captain Jenner quickly closed the door behind Number Three. _

"_Sit," she said, making a vague open-handed gesture towards the squat, four-legged chair before the large desk littered with papers and ancient reading materials known as 'books'. Captain Jenner was not a particularly fastidious person. _

"_I prefer to stand," replied Number Three but when the facial muscles around the captain's eyes contracted and caused an eyebrow to raise in a familiar expression of displeasure, she added, "however, I believe it is acceptable also to sit," and repositioned herself onto the cushioned seat. _

_Captain Jenner leaned against her desk, in close proximity to Number Three. _

"_Why did you tell the Pirate Queen that you love me?" she asked, her features softening as she presumably contemplated the memory. _

_Number Three hesitated briefly before answering. She knew her Captain would be reluctant to accept her romantic feelings towards her, and she felt suddenly vulnerable in ways she had never experienced before. _

"_Because I do love you," she replied at length. _

"_For how long?" the captain asked in a whisper, her voice seemingly getting caught in her throat. _

"_Since we first played tennis on the deck," Number Three informed her, "but in an especially intense manner since you came to rescue me from the Buccaneers."_

_Tears seemed to escape from the lacrimal glands at the corners of the captain's eyes against her will. Her face was flushed, erythrocytes having rushed closer to the surface of her skin in an emotional response. She did not, could not meet Number Three's eyes. _

"_I can't, Three," she plead, her voice so low it was barely audible. _

"_Cannot what?" _

"_I can't love you back."_

_Number Three considered these words carefully. They did not mean that the captain _did_ not love her. _

"_I'm the captain of this ship, Three," Captain Jenner continued. "I have a responsibility to this crew. I cannot be involved with someone, anyone in case it affects my ability to lead them. Don't you understand?"_

"_This crew will function adequately regardless of your personal affiliations… Elizabeth," Number Three said, attempting to be gentle. _

_The captain turned her head slightly away. Number Three was about to speak again when she heard the quiet, trembling voice of Captain Jenner. _

"_I've loved you since I held you in my arms in the Brig," she whispered, a tear running down her cheek. _

_The captain made no attempt to move and merely rested against the desk, allowing the tears to fall. She had yet to look at Number Three once more. _

_Unable to contain the urge any longer, Number Three stood and quickly closed the small distance between them, and bent down to press her lips to Captain Jenner's. She did not find the resistance she expected. The kiss deepened, on whose accord neither of them was sure, tongues entering each other's mouths as they attempted to become even more intimate with each other. Finally, Number Three broke the kiss to draw sufficient breath and whispered to her Captain in her arms._

"_Thank you for rescuing me from the Buccaneers, Elizabeth."_

_She was not expecting a verbal response but after pressing their mouths together once more, firmly but briefly, the captain responded. _

"_I would rescue you a thousand times over. I belong with you, and you with me."_

_Experiencing a hunger she had not known before, Number Three pulled Captain Jenner's thighs upward, and smiled into the kiss they were sharing as the captain wrapped her legs around the pirate's body. Holding the captain tightly in her arms, Number Three lifted her from the desk and carried her through to the smaller room cordoned off in the cabin. Together they fell onto the large bed and engaged in copulation, interspersed with many affirmations of their love, until the early hours of the next morning. _

Kathryn's mouth felt extremely dry. She realised with a small start that her jaw had dropped and she had been sitting there gaping at the PADD for a considerable length of time as she read and reread the last paragraph. She quickly made her way over to the replicator, ordering another whisky, neat, which she downed immediately. After standing there for what felt like an eternity mulling the story over and over in her head, the captain began pacing.

Despite its brevity and its relatively detached writing, her body had responded. _To what? Seven's emotions? The idea of 'copulating' with Seven? The fact that I'm in love with Sev-_

Kathryn was so stunned at the unsolicited admission that she silenced the stream of thoughts that were rapidly spiralling out of control. The story had to have been a confession by Seven of her feelings towards her but somehow it had managed to also get Kathryn to admit her own feelings to herself.

_I'm in love with Seven?_ she asked herself tentatively, as though the voice in her head might respond with an answer she didn't already know. _I'm in love with Seven. _The words felt foreign. She'd pushed down these feelings for so long, tried to avoid their simple truth. And now here they were, bubbling up from within every fibre of her being. Suddenly she had to sit down. She touched her fingertips to her lips, feeling an odd but pleasant sensation of lightness as adrenaline coursed through her veins. Unable to hold it back, she broke into a full smile. She picked up the PADD, then stopped by her replicator for both a glass of water and a cup of coffee before heading to her bed to settle in for a re-read of Seven's story. There was no way she would be sleeping much tonight.

...

At only 0915 hours, Janeway had already made her way through half of her third cup of coffee. She was contemplating whether she should have Neelix make up one of his God-awful 'special blends' with a boost of leola root and what seemed to be about ten times the caffeine when her ready room's door chimed. She felt herself blushing all the way to the roots of her hair, and quickly took a huge gulp of the remaining lukewarm coffee before calling out to allow Seven to enter.

"Captain," Seven greeted, although her voice was not as demanding, as cocky as usual. She sounded almost pleading to Janeway's trained ear.

"Have a seat, Seven," she said, gesturing to the couches on the raised platform, and made her way to the replicator for another cup of coffee. Truthfully, she was using it more as an excuse to turn away from Seven before she started blushing again. _This is it, Katie. _

"Thank you, Captain," the blonde said and uncharacteristically crossed the distance to the couch and settled her body awkwardly on it.

"Something to drink?" Janeway asked, still stalling.

"I…would be obliged if you could replicate nutritional supplement number eight for me, Captain. I have not yet consumed 'breakfast'."

Stunned, Janeway ordered the glass of supplement and carried it up to the couch, eyeing it carefully. It looked quite reprehensible, if she were perfectly honest, but she tried to smile as she handed it to Seven. She sat down but her body felt unnatural, as though she'd forgotten how to sit. Not knowing what to do with her hands, she resorted to clinging to her metal coffee mug for dear life. After a long silence in which she and Seven sipped on their drinks and tried desperately not to meet each other's eyes, Janeway cleared her throat.

"So…was that the end?"

"Yes, Captain," Seven croaked. "Was the ending satisfactory?"

"I…yes, I suppose…" the captain felt the blush creeping up again and screwed her eyes closed in a pathetic attempt to ward the redness away. "Seven, why did you write that Number Three was in love with the captain? That they…you know…."

"Copulated?"

"Yes, that. What made you…."

"You told me to 'use my imagination', Captain, to write about my own desires."

Janeway watched on in sudden wonder as a flush crept up the younger woman's face. _Right on the money! _

"And you…what, exactly?" the older woman asked, her heart beating so hard she briefly wondered whether someone would hear it if they had to appear at the door just then.

"And I…" Seven trailed off, pursing her full lips, a frown etched onto her brow. "I do not understand why this is so difficult to articulate. Why I chose to write such a frivolous piece of literature in an attempt to disguise this emotion...it is most frustrating!"

She sighed sharply, in a terribly human, terribly cute expression of her irritation. Kathryn stifled a laugh but couldn't suppress the affectionate megawatt smile that broke out on her lips.

"Why can I not just simply express my infatuation with you directly _to_ you?" Seven spat, then reared back in surprise, apparently unprepared to have declared that out loud.

Kathryn bit on her lips. She wanted to laugh out loud, jump up and down, climb onto her couch and shout out the viewport that Seven of Nine had just admitted to having a crush on her! But she was Captain, and Seven needed someone to calmly guide her through the fog of emotion and hormones, not a woman running amok on the ship as though she'd won the biggest lottery prize in the galaxy.

She set her coffee mug on the small table next to Seven's discarded glass and scooted cautiously over to Seven, putting a hand on her shoulder. The blonde turned her head away, her face a picture of petulance and discomfort.

"Seven, look at me."

Seven complied, her ice blue eyes red-rimmed and searching.

"People usually struggle to confess their love to someone, Seven. They don't want to be turned down. Are you afraid I will reject you?" Kathryn asked gently.

The frown on the blonde's forehead tightened, a flash of sadness crossing her eyes.

"Yes," she eventually said, so quietly Kathryn wasn't even sure she'd really said it.

"Listen carefully, Seven," she instructed, shifting herself even closer. "We're in the Delta Quadrant. I have an obligation to this crew to get them home. They cannot have a captain who is not doing her duty to the best of her ability."

Seven's breath hitched and she looked somewhat panic-stricken but she remained quiet as Kathryn continued.

"I haven't been doing my duty to the best of my ability, Seven. Without even realising it. I can't expect to lead them properly when I'm burning out, when I have nobody to share this burden with. I'm neglecting my duty to them by sacrificing myself for this mission."

Both women took a deep breath, searching each other's eyes.

"I've come to realise that I'm doing them a great disservice," Kathryn said, her whisper turning conspiratorial, "and to borrow a line from my new favourite author, that 'this crew will function adequately regardless of my personal affiliations'."

Seven inhaled quickly through her lips in a sharp hiss of surprise, her eyebrows shooting up as she looked deeply into the pools of indigo in front of her.

"Captain," she whispered, her voice trembling.

The older woman's hand came up and cupped her cheek, and she smiled lovingly at Seven.

"Kathryn," she corrected, her voice tender, but she didn't give the Seven a chance to speak further as she pressed her lips gently against the full ruby ones she didn't fully realise she'd been aching to taste for so long.

She parted her lips from Seven's and was busy pulling back to look into the younger woman's eyes again but with desperate ferocity, the ex-Borg's hand came up and wrapped around the back of Kathryn's neck, pulling her back into a crushing kiss. Seven swiped her hot, wet tongue over Kathryn's lower lip, demanding entrance. They kissed hungrily, and, her sense of propriety completely abandoned, Kathryn gripped Seven's waist and pulled herself into the blonde's lap before pawing at biosuit-covered breasts and sides. After an eternity they broke apart, breathless and flushed.

"Computer, seal the ready room doors," Kathryn quickly ordered, her voice husky. She smiled devilishly at Seven when the computer confirmed the instruction, then quirked an eyebrow up. "There was one part of your story I found particularly lacking in detail, Seven," she said, her voice low, teasing.

"A grievous error," Seven panted, arching her back as Kathryn dragged her fingernails over her stiff nipples pressing against the chocolate material of her biosuit. "Which details were insufficient, Kathryn?"

"I thought you should've given more attention to exactly _how_ Three and Jenner made love," she whispered into Seven's ear, soothing the spark of the words with a swipe of her tongue over the tender earlobe.

"I shall elaborate in my next revision, Kathryn."

"How about you show me now, instead?" she growled, biting down onto the tight cord of tendon in Seven's neck.

Seven whimpered lustfully and Janeway nearly came undone at the sound, if only she'd known how the next words would affect her:

"I will comply."

Gripping on to Kathryn's buttocks to pull her close, Seven lowered them back onto the couch, nipping at the pulse point in her captain's neck. Janeway let her hands roam to the blonde's ass as well, squeezing and trying to press Seven even closer against her. Extricating her hands from underneath them, Seven hurriedly unzipped Kathryn's tunic, then pulled back with an annoyed glare on her face.

"These jumpsuits are most inefficient for…making love," she scowled, looking down at Kathryn's waist.

"And a full-body catsuit is perfectly suited?" Janeway chuckled back, her eyes dark with lust.

"We require less clothing," Seven said and abruptly got to her feet, knocking over the small table and sending cups flying.

Janeway laughed lightly as Seven turned in confusion to see what had happened. She pushed her tunic off her shoulders, kicked off her boots and went to stand by the tall woman with the top half of her jumpsuit hanging around her waist. She felt even shorter standing barefoot beside Seven but she brushed the fleeting consternation aside and reached up to grasp the zipper at the base of the elegant neck in front of her.

Painfully slowly, she dragged the zipper down, making Seven shudder as she grazed skin with her knuckle. Seven pulled her arms out of her biosuit but held it up over her chest as she turned around.

"I…" she started, looking unusually shy. "I have many implants and scars, Kathryn. I…do not want you to be alarmed."

Janeway reached up and cupped Seven's cheek again, looking deep into azure eyes.

"I am not alarmed. You are gorgeous," she said simply.

Seven nodded, taking a small step back and dropping her eyes, letting the fabric fall to her waist. Janeway trailed her eyes up from where the biosuit folded over at the swell of Seven's hips, over the scarring and remaining abdominal implants to full, perfect breasts and dusky pink nipples. She took in a sharp breath and continued her journey over delicate collarbones, that long, elegant neck, the small dimple in Seven's chin, those full lips, now slightly kiss-swollen, up to the tip of Seven's nose where she knew she'd be planting affectionate kisses whenever she could, and finally meeting curious, hungry eyes. Her own lips had parted in wonder at some point, and judging by the expression on Seven's face, she'd very clearly been demonstrating her desire and appreciation of the woman in front of her.

She reached for the hem of her shirt but Seven beat her to it, pulling from the collar with her Borg-enhanced hand, scattering pips and shredding the cotton undershirt. Kathryn pulled her arms hurriedly out of the sleeves and reached around to undo the clasps of her simple bra. She hadn't even finished pulling it off when Seven lifted her up, taking one of Kathryn's smaller breasts in her mouth, sucking and nipping expertly at her nipple. Kathryn wrapped her legs around Seven's waist, throwing back her head at the sensation. Lowering the captain again onto the couch, Seven lavished her breasts with kisses, then moved them southward over her abdomen. The older woman shifted slightly as she peppered the hints of a soft belly with kisses, making her look up into Kathryn's eyes, reassuring the redhead with the lust that was flaming in the blonde's icy blue ones. Seven briefly raised herself up to plant a quick kiss on wine-coloured lips and quickly pulled the jumpsuit down Kathryn's thighs. The captain threw her bra away and growled, surging forward to pin Seven below her, eagerly tugging the biosuit as far down as she could get it while kicking her feet out of her own clothing. She moaned gently as one of her suspicions were confirmed: _So she really doesn't wear panties!_

The thought made her glance down at her own grey cotton panties, suddenly cursing herself for not having worn something a little more sexy than Starfleet-issue "lingerie". Seven finished peeling the fabric from her impossibly long legs, then looked up at the same little garment Kathryn was studying, her implant lifting in distaste.

"Remove this barrier," she instructed, and Janeway chuckled.

_Somehow, I think something lacy and delicate would've gotten the same treatment_, she mused, pushing the offending underwear down and kicking it off.

She gripped Seven firmly by the hips, and turning her around, pushed her back onto the couch. Rather than join the blonde again though, she made sure Seven was leaning against the backrest, then guided the shapely thighs in front of her open as she dropped to her knees. She looked up questioningly at Seven, and felt herself melting from the burning desire she found in answer. Without preamble, she swiped her tongue through soft, wet folds, tasting Seven from her opening to the top of her cleft. Both women moaned roughly.

"Bear with me," Janeway whispered, "I've never done this before."

"Whatever you have been doing up to now has been most effective. We will adapt to the circumstances, Kathryn," Seven breathed with a playful grin before threading her hands into thick auburn hair.

Kathryn shot Seven a devilish, lopsided smile and let her mouth be guided once more to the slick velvet between her lover's legs. Eagerly she swiped her tongue through the searing heat again, the faint spiciness she tasted there sending desire on a blazing course through her own body. Spurred on by Seven's hands in her hair and the soft guttural moans escaping into the air above her, Janeway lapped eagerly at the tender flesh. She ran the tip of her tongue firmly back and forth along the ridge she felt there, flicking the hardened nub at the top. Kathryn felt her own arousal building; the ache between her legs intensifying, her inner thighs becoming deliciously coated in her own desire. She reached up under her chin, flashing her dark eyes up quickly at Seven before sliding a finger into her. Seven's hips bucked forward. Kathryn curled her finger as she withdrew it, making Seven let out a long, disappointed wail. The captain smirked into Seven's sex as she re-entered the warmth, adding a second finger. After several torturously slow strokes, she felt the strong hands push her closer into Seven, hips bucking to force more of Janeway's fingers and tongue where the gorgeous blonde needed them. Kathryn picked up the pace, sucking and licking Seven's clit as she pumped her fingers inside her, curling them to press into the engorged smooth patch she found there.

Seven's moans and the movement of her hips were driving Kathryn wild and it was nearly all she could do not to reach down between her own legs. She didn't have long to contemplate the urge before strong arms were pulling her up, turning them around so she was on her back on the couch with Seven crawling on top of her.

"Together," Seven panted, "I want us to do this together."

Kathryn keened as Seven's fingertips pressed up against her swollen clit, her own hand burrowing between their sweat-slick bodies to Seven's throbbing sex. They worked their fingers over each other, tongues buried in each other's mouths, swallowing each other's moans. Kathryn pushed Seven onto her side next to her outstretched body, an arm wrapped underneath and around Seven's slim waist, her other hand slipping two fingers back into her lover. They both groaned, Seven breaking their kiss to watch as she pushed two of her own fingers into Kathryn, gasping as the digits hit home inside her Captain. They both looked down over their bodies as they writhed, trying to get more of each other inside, thumbs circling over each other's clits.

Kathryn felt Seven's muscles begin tightening more, the body alongside her beginning to tremble, and she turned her head to capture an earlobe between her teeth before husking lustily, "that's it, love, come for me."

Seven came undone at the words, whimpering softly, her eyebrows knit together as she watched her hips surge forward, her body rippling with the force of her orgasm.

"Kath…Kathryn," she breathed pleadingly, sending Janeway over the edge.

The captain buried her head into the blonde's neck as they rode out their orgasm. Breathing heavily as they settled bonelessly into each other and the ready room couch, they took their time to withdraw their fingers from each other, relishing in the intimacy.

Seven looked up into Janeway's dark, loving gaze, her own eyes sparkling with emotion.

"I…" she started, her voice catching.

"Shh," Janeway soothed, kissing her lips tenderly. "I am yours, you are mine, and that's how it should be. If Starfleet has a problem with that, then they may as well court martial me as far as I'm concerned. You're more important to me than them, than the Borg…"

"Than the Prime Directive, too," Seven added, a snarky smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

Janeway laughed richly, lighting up Seven's features even further.

"Even the Prime Directive, my love. I just needed a little story about a sailor and a pirate to push me where I needed to be."

"That was the intention, Kathryn," Seven admitted, nodding sagely.

Rather rudely, Janeway thought, the door chimed just then. Both women sighed, disentagling from each other so Kathryn could quickly replicate new clothes for them both. As they were pulling the new garments on, the door chimed again somehow more insistently, followed a few seconds later by the chirp of a COMM badge and Chakotay's voice.

"Captain, is everything alright? Why are your doors sealed?"

Efficient as always, Seven was already dressed and putting their clothes into the replicator. Affixing the last pip to her collar, Janeway walked over to the door and opened it for the commander.

"Hi, Chakotay," she said, smiling brightly at him. "Sorry about that, Seven was just reading me the last part of her story. It was most…engaging."

Chakotay scratched an eyebrow, looking somewhat perplexed.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure everything was okay," he finally conceded, looking Seven up and down out of the corner of his eye.

"Never better," Kathryn said, smiling even more broadly. "I think I'll join you on the bridge," she said.

"I will return to astrometrics, Captain," Seven offered, raising an implant, a small smirk on her face.

Janeway reached up and put her hand gently on the blonde's lower back, stopping her in her tracks.

"I hope there's more to that last scene, Seven. Why don't we meet this evening in my quarters to read the rest?"

"Acceptable. See you later," Seven replied, and much to Chakotay's surprise, she winked at the captain before sashaying towards the turbolift, leaving Kathryn grinning like the cat that got the cream.

"Shall we, Commander?" she asked, gesturing to their seats.

"Wasn't Seven wearing the brown biosuit this morning?" Harry puzzled from behind them, making the captain snicker. "Why's she got that red one on all of a sudden?"

"Must have been something to do with pirates, Ensign," Janeway replied, ignoring the puzzled looks her bridge staff turned toward her and waving a hand casually at Tom. "Carry on, Mister Bordeaux."


End file.
